


Elaria

by MYuzuki



Category: Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies)
Genre: Abusive Parents, Assassination Plot(s), Augments, Bad Parenting, Canon Continuation, Canon-Typical Violence, Dysfunctional Family, Emotional Baggage, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, Eventual Happy Ending, Eventual Romance, F/M, Family Drama, Family Secrets, Gen, Headaches & Migraines, Original Character(s), Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Twins, not abandoned I promise
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-06-17
Updated: 2016-05-03
Packaged: 2018-04-04 20:53:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 15,306
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4152561
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MYuzuki/pseuds/MYuzuki
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's been two months since the Enterprise's encounter with Khan, two months that they have spent exploring the neighboring regions of space. But when they are recalled to Earth suddenly for an additional mission, Kirk and his crew are once again pulled into a high stakes conflict. Khan is resuscitated in an attempt to even the odds in the Enterprise's favor, something that has the potential to be a mistake of epic proportions. But when Khan finds himself drawn to Elaria, a young woman with a bitter history of her own, the possibility for redemption may not be so far-fetched.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> As mentioned in the summary, this is a KhanxOC fic. The OC is Elaria, who was concocted entirely by me and isn't based on any persons real, fictional, et cetera (the same goes for the world Karitana and its people, etc; I made them, they're based only on the workings of my imagination and so on). Elaria herself doesn't actually arrive until the tail end of Chapter 3, but the plot set-up in these first couple chapters is just as important as she is, so please bear with me. Also, Khan comes into the story much sooner, and he is, most likely, the real reason you're reading this fic. XD

"Okay, so remind me why we're doing this?"  
Spock cast his captain a look that was both exasperated and amused. "Because we were ordered to do so by Starfleet Command."  
Kirk made a rude sound. "Yes. But we were on our way to explore an uncharted planet, Spock. Whatever this guy wants, it can't possibly be as important as that."  
"Starfleet Command seems to disagree," Spock remarked.

"Yeah, they do that a lot." But Kirk's tone was only a little annoyed; despite his wildcard nature and tendency to ignore the rules, he held the Federation in high regard. "Well, whatever. Let's go see what this guy wants." Kirk stepped into the lift that would take them to the top floor, where their 'client' was waiting. "What's his name again?"

"Vartik," Spock answered promptly. "Of the Class M planet Karitana."  
"Right," Kirk said. And then the lift arrived, and they stepped out.

They first took in their surroundings, an office that was sparsely yet tastefully furnished; a practical workspace. Then they saw the man whose space this was. At first, he stood with his back to them, which made Kirk uncomfortable; he liked to be able to see someone's face, look into their eyes, when he spoke to them.

"You're here," Vartik said, his voice low yet resonant.  
"Starfleet personnel are encouraged to be punctual," Spock said matter-of-factly.  
Vartik nodded once, then turned to face them. Kirk saw that he had dark hair and golden eyes; he couldn't be sure in the dim lighting, but the man's pupils appeared to be slitted like those of a cat.  
"You've been sent here," the Karitani man continued, "in accordance with a bargain I have made with Starfleet Command."

Kirk exchanged a look with his First Officer. "The details of this bargain being what exactly?"  
Vartik took a deep breath. "The U.S.S. Enterprise and its crew has been assigned as protection for my daughter's passage from Earth to Karus, the Karitani colony world."  
"Bodyguard duty?" Kirk said, letting his disbelief show.

"After ensuring the safe arrival of my daughter to Karus," Vartik continued, as if he hadn't heard Kirk, "the Enterprise will proceed to Karitana itself, and serve as a neutral party in the negotiations between my people and our war-hungry neighbors, the Rhovishans. It is this ambassadorial endeavor that enticed your Command; since Karus is on the way to Karitana, I simply convinced them to include my daughter's safe passage into the mission parameters."

"How opportunistic of you," Spock said.  
"I want my daughter safe," the other man said sharply. "I would do far worse to ensure her well-being, and why shouldn't I?"  
The Vulcan made no comment.

"Who's your daughter?" Kirk asked.  
"Her name is Jaylira," Vartik answered, retrieving a small photo from his desk drawer.  
Kirk took it and examined the subject. A slender young woman with long blonde hair and green eyes (traits that presumably came from her mother), he recognized her immediately. "Your daughter is JayJay?"

Spock arched a brow, giving him a disbelieving look. "Do you know her, Captain?"  
"Well, not personally, no," he responded. "But everyone's heard of her, she's gotten pretty famous. Some pop star sensation, right?" He looked to Vartik for confirmation.

"Yes," he said, lips pursed. "My daughter is the singer known by the moniker JayJay. She's recently received several disturbing threats, and her mother and I decided it would be best for her to leave Earth for a time. Since the timing of this coincides with our need for an intermediary on Karitana, we decided to 'kill two birds with one stone', as the human saying goes."

Kirk felt that there was more to it than that, but what good would interrogating the man do? Starfleet had already assigned them to do this; reporting to Vartik had simply been to acquire the exact details of the mission, given the 'sensitive' nature of the assignment.

"Where is your daughter now?" he asked.

* * *

"JayJay, over here!" A bright camera flash.  
"Can you comment on your withdrawal from the Sensations Tour this summer?" another reporter asked.  
"Are rumors of your going into rehab true?"

"JayJay, we have a fan club wanting your autographs." That was her manager, shadowing her as usual. "And someone from Starfleet should be here soon to pick you up for your transport to Karus."  
She nodded slightly, then focused on smiling brightly at the crowds, shaking hands and kissing cheeks as she made her way over to the waiting fans.

She was only halfway through signing pictures, posters, and t-shirts when they came up to her. Dressed in Starfleet uniforms, they could only be her new babysitters. She flashed a dazzling smile. "Hello."  
The lead one returned her smile, though his companion did not. "Hi," he said. "I'm Captain Kirk, of the starship _Enterprise_. This is Mr. Spock, my First Officer."  
Mr. Spock simply nodded in greeting.  
"I assume your father has filled you in?" Kirk asked.

She suppressed her irritation at the situation, and her father's overreaction to it. "Yes, he has. Is it time to go?"  
Captain Kirk nodded. "It is." He moved to take her by the elbow, and then all hell broke loose.

An energy blast flew through the air, exploding into the crowd barely two feet from where they'd been standing. It was quickly followed by several more. Kirk shoved her to the ground immediately, pulling out a phaser even as he protected her from further shots.

"Spock?" he shouted.  
"I am unharmed, Captain."  
"Good." Kirk looked back to her. "What about you?" he asked her. "Are you hurt?"  
Too shocked to speak, she simply shook her head.  
Kirk nodded. "Good," he repeated. "Spock, stay with her. I'm gonna go track down our party-crasher."  
"Captain," Spock said, "that would be most unwise. Confronting this assassin on your own is extremely-"  
"Relax, Spock." He clapped his friend on the shoulder. "I got this. Guard the girl."

The Vulcan didn't look convinced, but gave no further objections. What he did do was relocate them to a position behind a pillar when there was a short pause in the volley of shots.  
"Stay down," he ordered, and she complied without argument; staying out of sight was clearly the better option, since this madman with the heavy firepower was evidently after her.

* * *

Kirk rushed through the frenzied crowd, intent on locating the man responsible for this carnage. Whoever it was, they clearly hadn't cared about the innocent bystanders around Jaylira. Hell, maybe that sort of bloodshed was what he'd been after; JayJay as the target, but with mass casualties to make it seem a simple terrorist attack. If mass slaughter could be considered simple.

He saw another volley of shots fly through the air, and tracking the trajectory saw where the shooter must be firing from; a window in a skyscraper that was empty and undergoing renovations. He slammed through the door and began pounding up the stairs, since the lift was clearly out of operation. He reached the floor the shooter was on, paused to catch his breath, then rushed in.

He had to jump to the side almost at once as a series of shots flashed towards him. He returned fire, but his opponent avoided the blasts as if they were gently tossed snowballs.

The assassin appeared to be in his early thirties, with sandy blonde hair and hazel eyes. That was all Kirk had time to notice before the other man opened fire on him again. Kirk just barely ducked behind a partially demolished wall before the shots tore into him.

He waited for a moment, then leaned out, phaser set to stun. But the other man was no longer where he'd been, a previously closed door swinging open to indicate the direction he'd gone.

His communicator chirped. " _Captain_ ," Spock's voice came through, " _are you there?_ "  
"Yeah, I'm here." He jogged over to the door and looked out.  
" _Have you subdued the attacker?"_  
  
"Uh...no." To his dismay, the blonde man was nowhere to be seen, and the hall split in three directions, and had a staircase. "He's gone." Then he noticed that the security camera above the stairwell was still functional, and smiled. "But there should be security footage of him; we can get an ID and run him down that way."

A long pause, then " _Understood, Captain. I will escort Jaylira to Vartik then join you at the security office_."  
"Sounds good. You be careful, though, okay? This is one tough bastard.  
" _Duly noted, sir_."

* * *

Kirk knew his First officer was more than capable of protecting himself, but he was still relieved when Spock arrived at the security office unharmed.

"No trouble on the way?" he asked.  
"One more attempt was made on Vartik's daughter," Spock informed him, "but it was unsuccessful. She is at her father's safehouse now."  
Kirk nodded. "Good work. She should be safe there until we go to pick her up." He turned back to the console he'd been working at. "I managed to isolate an image of his face; I was just about to run it through the system."  
Spock said nothing, simply nodded.

It took only a moment. Then the computer screen became inundated with information, most of it designated CLASSIFIED. But Kirk saw one brief report that caught his eye.

_Subject believed to be connected somehow to the break-in of Cryovault 17. Investigation currently underway, details unknown._

"Cryovault?" Kirk said out loud, looking over at Spock.  
The Vulcan gave a slight shrug, then began a search through the system for further information. "It appears," Spock said after a moment, "that Cryovault 17 is where Khan and his crew were stored for their sentences of extended cryostasis."

Kirk didn't like where this was going. "And someone broke in?"  
"Evidently."  
"Who? This guy?" He looked back at the photo and something occurred to him, something that made his breath catch in his throat and his stomach churn. The ease with which the blond man had avoided his phaser blasts, how inhumanly fast he'd been fleeing the scene... "Spock...what if he wasn't trying to break someone _out_ of that vault. What if someone broke _him_ out?"

The Vulcan looked equally disturbed, and quickly pulled up the current incident report for the break-in. "The investigation is underway as we speak...They have not finished their analysis, but it would appear that one cryotube is empty."


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi, everbody! Welcome to chapter 2 of the KhanxOC fic Elaria.
> 
> Before I say anything else, I want to thank those of you who are reading this story. Your patronage is greatly appreciated! :D
> 
> In regards to the story: Khan is introduced in this chapter, as promised. I hope you all enjoy my depiction of him, though if any of you feel he is at all OOC, all I can do is point out that this is, after all, fanfiction. XD
> 
> Disclaimer: I do not own or claim to own any part of the Star Trek franchise (though I do have a lovely set of playing cards from the original series). Elaria, Jaylira, Vartik, and all other characters who do not appear in canon were created from my own imagination, et cetera. :D
> 
> Anyway, enjoy the chapter! And please review when you're done. Reviews make me very happy. :D

To say that Starfleet Command opposed Kirk's plan would be an understatement of epic proportions.

"You expect us to simply turn loose a convicted criminal whose actions resulted in the deaths of hundreds of innocent men and woman, in the hopes he'll, what, help you out of the goodness of his heart?" Admiral Halloway's tone was a caustic combination of disbelief and fury.

Kirk bore his superior's incredulity with good grace. "Khan owes me, sir. I'm sure I can convince him to help us."  
"Owes you, huh?" Halloway snorted. "I doubt he'll see it that way. The man's a ruthless despot."

"Be that as it may," Kirk countered, "the only way to catch the Augment who escaped is with Khan's assistance. He's the only one with the skills to match the fugitive."  
"He's not going to want to bring down one of his own men," the admiral pointed out.  
"Leave it to me," Kirk assured him. "I'll strike a good deal. It'll work out good for everyone, I promise."

Admiral Halloway didn't look at all pleased, but relented. "If the situation on Karitana weren't so serious, and Vartik not such an important ally of the Federation, I wouldn't even consider this. But given the circumstances, it seems I have no choice." He sighed. "Fine. Release Khan from cryostasis. But keep him on a tight leash, Kirk. We can't afford for him to cause anymore havoc. We've barely started to put the pieces back together after the last time."

"Understood, sir. I'll be one my guard."

* * *

Spock couldn't believe it.

"Captain," he said as Jim led the way through Cryovault 17, following the directions of one of the facility's guards, "I feel compelled to point out that this course of action is most unwise."  
"I know."  
"Releasing Khan is both dangerous and morally ambiguous."  
"We don't have a lot of other options," Kirk countered. "We need to complete this mission successfully, and for that we need Khan."

Spock didn't entirely agree with that assessment, but knew better than to try and debate it. James T. Kirk was nothing if not stubborn, and he'd clearly made up his mind on the matter. All Spock could do was remain at his side to ensure nothing _too_ disastrous occurred.

"Ah, here it is." Kirk stopped walking and looked down at the cryotube in question. Through the glass viewport they could see Khan's sleeping visage, his face oddly peaceful, with a small content smile that was at odds with what they'd seen of the man. Kirk almost felt bad for waking the Augment up again. But it really was the only option he could see, with another of Khan's crew on the loose. Going after him on their own, they'd face the same difficulties as they had when pursuing Khan himself. But with Khan's _help_ …

"How do we wake him up from this thing?" Kirk asked, looking at the machine.  
Spock couldn't help protesting one final time. "Jim, this course of action is very ill-advised. The mathematical probability of Khan agreeing to help us is less than one-point-two percent. Furthermore-"  
"Spock!" Kirk looked over at him. "I know the odds aren't good, okay? Just…help me get him out of this thing."

The Vulcan, despite loathing the Augment within the capsule, complied with his friend's request. He deactivated the cryotube, then took a step backwards, bracing himself for a fight. After all, the last time he'd interacted with Khan had been a no-holds-barred brawl between them, both of them driven by grief-fueled rage.

Khan had believed his crew to be dead, and Spock had lost all emotional control when Jim had been killed saving the Enterprise. It had been Khan, or at least his blood, that had revived Spock's Captain, but while the Vulcan was relieved at Kirk's return o life, his gratitude didn't lessen his dislike of the Augment leader. Glancing over at Kirk, he hoped round two with Khan didn't result in the permanent death of his closest friend.

The cryotube's lid cracked open and frosty air rushed out, swirling to the ground. Then the lid lifted completely, exposing Khan's still form. The Augment didn't move for a moment, and Kirk wondered if the cryotube's systems had been damaged somehow in the two months since they'd re-activated it. But then those ice-cold blue eyes opened, and Khan sat up.

"Kirk," was all he said, but his tone was weighted down with questions.  
"Good morning," Kirk said cheerfully, trying not to let his discomfort show. "How do you feel?"  
Khan ignored the question. "What are you doing here?"  
Kirk exhaled, hard. "I need a favor," he admitted after a moment.  
A faint smirk of amusement. "And why, after all the bad blood between us, should I do anything for you?"

Here we go, Kirk thought. All or nothing. He pulled out a PADD and held it up. On the screen was a still image of the blonde assassin, taken from the security footage they'd gotten from inside the abandoned building.

The flash of recognition in Khan's eyes was clear. He looked at the image, then turned back to Kirk, his gaze boring into Kirk's as if he were trying to pull the answers from his mind. "Explain," he said, his tone carefully controlled.  
"So I take it you know him," Kirk surmised.

Khan said nothing, but he didn't have to.  
"We already know that he's one of your crew," Spock informed him. "We matched his image with that of one of the men in the list we compiled of your crew prior to transferring them to this facility."

Khan cast a dismissive look around their surroundings, then looked back to the Captain. "What is it you want?" he asked. "If you already know who he is."  
Kirk glanced at Spock, unsure of how much to reveal. His Vulcan companion understood the concern, but knew that trying to keep information from Khan was both futile and detrimental to their mission.

"The individual in this image made an assassination attempt on the daughter of the Federation's Karitani contact, a man who, if all goes well, will one day be the Karitani ambassador to Earth."  
Khan didn't look impressed. "And?"  
"Since his daughter is a prominent figure in her own right, we do not yet know if the attempt to kill her was due to her status or his,. Capturing your crewman for questioning would be most helpful in determining the source of this threat, and whether it is directed forwards Vartik, and the budding alliance between Earth and Karitana."

Disbelief and scorn was clear in his expression. "You want me to help you to hunt down one of my own men," he said, voice dark with anger.  
"That is correct," Spock answered.  
"And why," Khan asked, "would I even consider agreeing to such an abhorrent course of action?"  
"Because if you don't," Kirk said, "We'll have no choice but to go after him with lethal force. If you help us," he continued, "we're willing to take him into custody alive."

A long moment of silence, during which Khan regarded Kirk with an unreadable look.  
Jim took the opening as a chance to press his advantage. "Look," he said. "I know you care about your crew; in my opinion it's probably your one redeeming quality." He made sure to meet Khan's eyes, to ensure that the Augment was _really_ listening. "You have to realize that it would be better to take him alive. For us, and for you. You can't afford to lose one of your men, and we don't want to use lethal force to bring him down. But we will if we have to."

More silence, but Khan's jaw was clenched and his eyes were stormy with emotion.  
"Are you going to help us," Kirk asked, "or not?"

"On one condition," Khan said finally.  
Kirk wasn't surprised; a chess master like Khan would always have conditions and counter-moves. "What?"  
"That he be remanded into my custody once we capture him. I'd also like input on deciding his punishment. All of which is only fair, as I am his commanding officer."  
"Those are, in fact, two separate conditions," Spock felt compelled to point out.

Khan ignored him, focusing on Kirk. "Do we have an understanding, Captain?"  
"We do."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thus ends Chapter 2. Did you like it, hate it? Did I do a decent job of writing Khan? Whatever your opinion, please write a review. Or PM me if you're shy. ;D I love any reviews, long or short, even anonymous, so just give me your take on the story so far. I always answer all reviews with a hearty thank you, too. :D
> 
> Chapter 3 will be posted sometime within the next week, so stay tuned! See you next time!


	3. Chapter 3

"His name is Solomon," Khan informed them as they proceeded through Cryovault 17 back the way they'd entered. "A particularly skilled marksman and explosives expert."

"A good choice for an assassin," Kirk concluded.  
Khan narrowed his eyes at the captain. "Any of my crewmates would have the skills necessary to eliminate this 'JayJay'. Whoever is ultimately responsible for this chose Solomon for another reason."

"And what reason would that be?" Spock inquired.  
"We'll undoubtedly discover it when we apprehend him," Khan said coolly. "Until then I can only speculate."

Kirk's communicator chirped. "This is Kirk," he said, flipping it open.  
" _Captain_ ," Uhura said. " _Vartik is becoming impatient, sir. He's demanding that you meet him at the safehouse immediately_."  
"We're on our way there now," he assured her. "Just tell him to hold tight."  
"… _Yes, sir_."  
The transmission ended, and Kirk pocketed his communicator.

They reached the exit of the cryovault. Kirk and Spock, already intent on boarding their transportation shuttle, left without hesitation. But Khan hesitated on the threshold, looking back at the rows of cryotubes.

Somewhere in those rows were his people. His family. It hurt him to have to leave them again, especially when they'd finally been somewhat reunited. It was easier this time, knowing that they would be safe here in the vault, rather than in the hands of a madman like Marcus. But still…leaving them vulnerable, unguarded as they slumbered…it went against every fiber of his being to do so, but he had no choice.

If he assisted Kirk, convinced him of his reliability, perhaps the brash young captain would consider speaking to Starfleet on his behalf. He knew it was an unreasonable hope, and the very idea of asking for such assistance made him ill. But if the future of his crew could be benefited by such a thing, he would submit himself gladly.

_I will return for you_ , he promised, looking at the icy capsules that filled the building. _I swear it._

"Yo, Khan." Kirk's voice, calling him from his silent vow. "Let's go."  
He lingered a moment longer, then joined the two Starfleet officers aboard the transport, working to keep his face expressionless. To show emotion would be to show weakness; that was what he'd learned over the course of his life.

A clever enemy wouldn't hesitate to exploit such a weakness; Marcus had proven that when he'd used the other Augments as leverage against him. And Khan couldn't afford to be taken advantage of again. Fate was unlikely to give him another opportunity to save his people.

This was his last chance. He had to proceed cautiously, with the utmost care.

* * *

"Where have you been?" Vartik demanded upon their arrival. "Is the importance of this mission not apparent?"  
"Our apologies," Spock said. "We were investigating the identity of your daughter's attacker."

"You know who it was?" That was Jaylira, looking over at them with wide eyes from where she was on a low couch, now wearing a floral print dress instead of the sequined gown she'd had on for her appearance that afternoon.

Kirk exchanged a look with Khan. "We do," he said eventually.  
Vartik saw the glance and seemed to notice Khan for the first time. "Who are _you_?" he snapped.

Khan seemed to consider how to answer that. It was, after all, a heavily loaded question, with equally weighted answers. In the end, though, he settled for a simple response. "Khan," he said.

Kirk felt relieved that that was all Khan had to say about himself for the moment. Going into the full story would likely turn Vartik again what he was about to propose. "Khan is familiar with the main who's targeting your daughter. He's agreed to help us apprehend him, and discover who hired him and why."

Vartik took a moment to digest that, then gave a jerky nod. "Fine. So long as he's not a liability he can accompany us."  
That earned him a darkly amused look from Khan. "How generous of you," he drawled.

Vartik glared at him, but before he could give a caustic retort something else seemed to cross his mind. He whirled to pin one of his private guards in a furious glare. "Where is Elaria?" he demanded.

The suited man gave a start, looking decidedly uncomfortable. "We-we're not sure, sir," he stammered. "The guards we sent out to retrieve her haven't reported in yet."  
"Find out where they are," Vartik said coldly, his words clipped.

The guard nodded, and talked hastily into his comm. Unit. "They're on their way up now," he reported a moment later. "She's with them," he added.

A strange expression flitted across the Karitani man's face; it seemed to be an odd combination of relief and anger. All he said was "Good."  
"Who's Elaria?" Kirk asked, voicing the question he knew Spock and Khan must have had as well. Well, perhaps not Khan; Kirk wouldn't have been surprised if the Augment didn't care one way or the other who this Elaria person was.

Vartik's lips twisted down at the corners, as if he had a sour taste in his mouth. "You'll see soon enough," he said. "She's not a particularly pleasing person to spend any extended amount of time with, but her presence is required."  
"Required?" Kirk echoed.

"If her accompanying us on this journey is so imperative," Spock said, "why were we not informed of it prior to now? We depart within the hour; this is most definitely late notice."  
Vartik didn't look at all pleased about the Vulcan's censure. But before he could voice his disapproval, the doors whooshed open to reveal a young woman flanked by two burly guards.

Slim yet with well-toned muscles, she seemed to be in her early to mid twenties, with dark hair and gold eyes, her catslit pupils denoting her as being of Karitani lineage. Dressed in a black leather vest and tattered black jeans with shadowy make-up, she gave off a distinct aura of kiss-my-ass.

"Where were you," Vartik asked through gritted teeth.  
Elaria gave him an insolent look. "Out," she answered.  
A tic beat in the Karitani man's jaw, but all he said was "We depart for Karus in twenty minutes."

If that came as a surprise to her, she didn't show it. "Fine." She glanced over at the three men she wasn't acquainted with. "You must be the Starfleet studs who are going to fly us there in style."  
Kirk grinned, taking an instant liking to her. "That would be us. Well," a look at Khan, "not him. But yeah. I'm Jim Kirk, captain of the Enterprise. "  
She gave a slight smile. "Nice to meet you, Captain."

"Enough," Vartik ordered, glaring at the dark-haired woman. "Remember your place."  
Something flickered across her face, an emotion that was too fleeting for Kirk to identify. "How could I possibly forget," she said coldly, "when you make it so readily apparent at every opportunity."

Kirk was stunned by the sudden tension in the room. Elaria seemed like an agreeable enough person to him, yet Vartik and his security detail were all eying her like she was at the top of their Top Ten Most Hated People lists. He turned towards Jaylira, hoping to see at least one reasonable person. But the venom in the pop star's gaze was just as potent as that of the others, it not more.

He turned to Spock, hoping the Vulcan might be able to offer some insight, but his friend looked equally baffled. And Khan was expressionless, those icy eyes taking it all in without comment. He seemed faintly intrigued by the anti-Elaria dynamic in the room, but that could have been Kirk's imagination.

He cleared his throat. "Anyway," he said, "we're going to leave for Karus soon. Please, uh…make sure you have everything you'll need for the journey."  
Elaria glanced at Vartik, then walked across the room, moving to stand by the room's single window. She passed Jaylira as she went, and the blonde woman actually _leaned back_ in her seat, as if trying to keep her distance. Elaria noticed the movement and gave a thin smile. "Good to see you, too, princess."

"Don't speak to me" Jaylira said sharply, manicured hands clenching into fists.  
Another flicker of emotion in Elaria's eyes –hurt? Or perhaps loneliness?- before her expression returned to casually disinterested.

It was then that Kirk noticed something that piqued his curiosity. While Elaria and Jaylira had completely different coloring, Jaylira blonde and green-eyed while Elaria was golden-eyed with dark hair, there was something in the shape of their faces that was similar. And furthermore, he realized, Elaria's coloring was nearly identical to that of Vartik. And while it was entirely possible that dark hair and gold eyes were common traits among the Karitani, it struck him as an odd coincidence.

His communicator chirped, interrupting his speculative thoughts. "This is Kirk."  
" _Captain_ ," Uhura said. " _We've been cleared for departure, sir. Just waiting for you_."  
He nodded, though he knew she couldn't see him. "We'll be there soon."  
" _Understood_."


	4. Chapter 4

Elaria sat silently in her seat on the transport shuttle, opting to look out the small window rather than speak.

Which was probably just as well; hearing her voice reminded Vartik and the others that she existed, and it never seemed to be a happy reminder. Particularly for Jaylira, to whom she should have been closest. But Vartik had lied to his precious popstar daughter about Elaria, about who and what she was. Just like Jaylira's dyed hair and colored contacts, it was all lies and fakery.

And while it still tore at her heart, she'd learned long ago to numb herself to that pain. Succumbing to it would accomplish nothing, and her rebellious pride was too great to allow such a thing anyway.

Suppressing a sigh, she looked away from the black sky outside the window and instead directed her attention to the three men from Starfleet. Or rather, two Starfleet men and one who was something else. She'd quickly realized that while the third man, with the icy eyes and smooth voice, was with Kirk and the Vulcan, he also held himself apart from them. And the two Starfleet officers were clearly wary of the man, which intrigued her.

While not overtly impressive-looking aside from his good looks, there was something about him…a sort of contained energy, like he could erupt into action at any moment, if he so chose.

As if sensing her eyes on him, he turned slightly to meet her gaze. He arched an eyebrow in an almost taunting way, and she felt a flash of irritation, mixed with some amusement. Rolling her eyes, she looked away, feigning disinterest. The man –Khan, she remembered him calling himself- assessed her for a moment longer before turning to once again face the front.

Feeling thoroughly sick of her life, she picked at her black nail polish for lack of anything better to do. A few moments later they reached the Enterprise, and she couldn't help but notice the change in Kirk's expression.

It was like he was returning home to his loved ones after a long time away. Which was ridiculous; he'd only been away for the day. Yet even so…the joy and relief on his face was obvious.

She found herself oddly envious; he must be close with the people on his ship, to have such a look. She'd never had that sort of closeness with anyone, and her isolation from the love that she should have had wasn't likely to cease anytime soon. Vartik and his wife Caroline were the only ones aside from the private family physicians who knew her true heritage.

Even precious Jaylira didn't know the real story. It was a secret that she bore alone. It caged her, and had left her soul bruised and battered from the emotional strain. She'd even sought death on multiple occasions, so desperate she'd been for escape.

But she'd been thwarted each and every time, and Vartik had made it clear after her last suicidal undertaking that yet another attempt to kill herself would see her sequestered away permanently and under _constant_ guarded watch. Because if she died, the odds of Jaylira perishing in the event of an accident went up.

As the only other human-Karitani hybrid in the known universe, Elaria was literally the only viable donor for the popstar.

Of course, it should have gone both ways. But Vartik and Caroline had no love for her, the younger twin. The unwanted one. The only reason she'd been allowed to live at all, when Karitani tradition stated that the second of the twins should be abandoned, was because if Jaylira ever need an organ transplant, or even a simple blood transfusion, she was the only option.

And her sister didn't even know their real connection, having been raised to believe that Elaria was some sort of genetic experiment, or something along those lines. She didn't know what exactly her –their- parents had told her, but knew that Jaylira had started hatefully calling her 'freak' and other such names not long after they'd hit puberty; Vartik, always distant to Elaria, had become downright cruel to her around that time as well, and it had crushed something inside of her, something that had never really healed.

_But that's fine_ , she told herself sternly. _I don't need them anyway. I don't need anyone._

* * *

Khan was determined to focus on assisting Kirk and thereby help his people. But there was something about the Karitani woman, Elaria. He'd catch his thoughts drifting to her at unexpected moments. Her interactions with Vartik and his daughter had been so volatile, and while she'd acted like their words hadn't bothered her, he couldn't shake the feeling that it _had_ affected her, somehow.

He watched her out of the corner of his eye as they docked inside the Enterprise and disembarked. She stayed near Vartik and Jaylira, but not too close. She hung on the peripheral, as if hesitant to go any closer to them.

He wondered if she were frightened of them, then immediately dismissed the notion. Elaria didn't strike him as the cowering type; the fire in her eyes made it clear that she had the spirit of a warrior.

His thoughts returned to the immediate situation when Kirk turned to him. "You're going to behave, right?"  
He didn't bother trying to stop the smirk that came to his lips. "But of course."  
Kirk, not a fool, didn't look convinced. "Uh-huh. Sure."

Khan arched a brow. "Having second thoughts, Captain Kirk?"  
Kirk didn't answer, instead turning to Spock. "I'm going to head up to the Bridge," he told his friend. "You take these guys down to Bones to get checked out."  
"Very well," the Vulcan answered. "I'll join you when we're finished."  
Kirk nodded. "Good. See you up there."

And then he was gone, striding down the hall. Spock watched him go, then led them in the opposite direction. They took a turbolift up a few levels, they arrived at MedBay. Khan recognized the physician, McCoy, as being the same from two months before. And judging from the doctor's scowl, McCoy hadn't forgotten him either.

"Spock," McCoy said by way of greeting.  
"Doctor," the Vulcan acknowledged. "I have brought out passengers for their pre-departure work-up."  
McCoy nodded. "I'll get started right away." A glance at Vartik and the two women. "I'm going to do a basic med scan and then take a blood sample from each of you."

The Karitani man didn't look at all pleased. "That's not necessary."  
"Actually it is," Bones said. "I need confirmation that you're all suitably healthy for space travel."  
"It _is_ standard procedure," Spock assured Vartik.  
A tense silence, then "I will consent to this for myself and my daughter. But to do this for Elaria would be a waste of resources."

Bones wasn't the least bit dissuaded. "Since they're my resources to waste, I think that's up to me."  
Vartik pursed his lips."You will not draw her blood."  
Bones lifted his eyebrows in disbelief but gave no ground. "I won't allow anyone to stay on this ship without at least being scanned and a blood sample taken for analysis."

"That decision is not yours," Vartik insisted, "but rather the Captain's."  
McCoy crossed his arms. "Believe it or not, I actually outrank our fearless leader in terms of medical expertise. Which makes it ultimately up to me. If you don't agree to the work-up," he continued, "I won't allow you to remain onboard. The same goes for her.  
Vartik regarded the doctor for a long moment before speaking. "What purpose do these tests serve?"

The doctor was clearly losing his patience, but managed to his voice controlled. "To assess your current physical condition and see if you have any pre-existing conditions that we to be aware of. Also to determine if your system contains any potentially hazardous pathogens or viruses that could be transmitted to the crew." He looked at them severely. "I don't allow the _captain_ on board without undergoing at least a basic scan. What makes you think I'd make an exception for you?"

It was obvious that McCoy wasn't going to budge on the issue, and Khan couldn't help but feel some respect for the doctor for holding his ground.

"We might as well just get it over with," Elaria said, speaking up for the first time since they'd left Earth. "He's clearly not going to let you bully him in acquiescence."  
Vartik narrowed his gaze at her. "You _want_ him to take a blood sample from you."

She snorted. "You overestimate me. I don't care either way. But I feel obligated to point out that my presence here is at your behest. Allowing them to remove me from the ship seems counterproductive, whether it's for the sake of your secrets or not."

Vartik growled at her, a low rumbling sound.  
She looked completely unfazed. " _Tolrianu_ ," she said; it was presumably a word or phrase in the native Karitani language. Whatever the meaning, it seemed to be something that Vartik agreed with, albeit reluctantly.

"Run your tests and take your blood samples," he said to McCoy. "But no more."  
"Provided everything turns out normal, that's all I'll need." He gestured to Jaylira. "Since you're the guest of honor, why don't we start with you?"  
The popstar hesitated, then smiled nervously. "Okay.

Bones took her blood first, then scanned her with his tricorder. He repeated the process with Vartik, then waved at Elaria to come forward for her turn. She hesitated for a split second, not long enough for anyone other than Khan to notice. But he did notice, and wondered at it. She'd voiced her indifference to the medical work-up, but there had still been that second of hesitation. And Vartik and his daughter were looking on with clear disapproval as Dr. McCoy drew Elaria's blood.

As for the Karitani woman herself…her expression was distant, as if her thoughts were far, far away.

He wondered what she was thinking about, then cast it from his mind; it was irrelevant to the mission, and to his goals of freeing his people.

"There we go," McCoy said a moment later. "You're all set. The tricorder scans all seem normal. I'll get the bloodwork done within the hour, and we should be good to go, provided nothing unusual turns up."  
Spock nodded. "Thank you, Doctor."  
"Sure thing." Bones waved a dismissive hand and returned to his main work bench, thoughts already on his planned tests.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thus ends Chapter 4.
> 
> So, yes, Elaria is the "unwanted" daughter, though it's also much more complicated than that; I'll expand on it even further in later chapters. :) Also, if anyone cares to know, the Karitani word Elaria says, "tolrianu", has the literal translation of "No alternatives", and basically the overall meaning of "There is no other way."
> 
> As always, please let me know how you feel about the chapter. Did I write everyone convincingly? Did everything make sense? Any and all feedback is appreciated. :D
> 
> The next chapter will most mostly likely be posted in two or three days, depending on my schedule. Stay tuned!


	5. Chapter 5

Elaria was surprised but pleased when she was given quarters of her own. And it was very nice room, too. Since it was unlikely that Vartik had decided to show her that kindness, she resolved to thank Captain Kirk for his thoughtfulness later. At the moment he was busy managing the Enterprise's departure from Earth space; their medical work-ups had come back without any dangerous abnormalities, and they had subsequently set course for Karus.

She walked the perimeter of her room, then paused in front of the mirror. Her reflection stared back at her, impassive. She reached out a hand and touched the cold glass, tracing the outline of her face absentmindedly as her thoughts drifted.

The journey to Karus could take anywhere from four to eight days, depending on who and what they encountered along the way. Rhovishan 'mercenary' patrols, erratic security drones left over from the war…yet despite these risks, she found herself wishing for a long trip rather than a short one. This time aboard the Enterprise had the potential to be the respite she needed.

And she did need it, badly. Because once she and Jaylira were offloaded onto the colony world, her dreary suffocating life would only become even more constricting. Vartik had given the security forces on Karus standing orders to keep her under strict watch at all times. After all, the officials living on Karus were considered 'big wheels', so to speak, and had considerable influence, even back on their devastated homeworld.

And the last thing Vartik wanted was for Elaria to approach such a person and spill the proverbial beans about her identity. Such a revelation would cause irreparable harm to his reputation.

"And we can't have that," she muttered to herself, feeling that familiar twinge of hurt and betrayal.

* * *

James Kirk sat in the captain's chair, feeling just a little bit bored. They'd been underway for about five hours now, and nothing notably exciting had happened. Which was, he told himself, a good thing.

It meant that things were going smoothly, which was always nice. A little rare for him and his crew, but nice nevertheless.

And he really was more than a little surprised that it was all going so well. With his run of luck, he'd been expecting things to start going wrong right away. He'd figured that Khan would try something to sabotage them, but so far the Augment had been curiously passive; he'd submitted to Bones for a cursory medical exam, and had then retreated to his assigned quarters, which had two security officers posted outside the door as a precaution.

He wondered at Khan's inactivity, but decided not to look such a gift horse in the mouth. No doubt the Augment would try something eventually; for now, Kirk was content with the peace aboard his ship.

The peace, however, didn't last long. It was just twenty minutes later that his good luck ran out.  
"Captain," Sulu said suddenly, looking worried, "we have an unidentified object approaching from starboard side."

He sat up in his chair. "Scan it, find out what it is."  
Sulu obeyed at once, tapping at his console in quick confident movements. But then he shook his head. "It's some sort of unmanned drone, but not one Starfleet's encountered before. I can't find anything like it in our archive." A warning light appeared on his screen. "It's moving to attack, sir."  
"Attack?" Kirk said in disbelief. "It's a fraction of our size."

"That doesn't seem to matter, sir," Sulu answered. "It's charging weapons to fire."  
"Shields up," he ordered, than jabbed at the intercom button on the arm of his chair. "All hands, brace for impact."

A moment later two successive energy blasts smashed into the Enterprise.  
"Shields down to seventy percent," Sulu informed him.  
"Return fire," Kirk ordered.  
"Yes, sir." Sulu fired forward phasers at the mystery object, but to no avail. "Our weapons fire seems to be ineffective, sir. It must have some sort of shielding."

Kirk took a moment t think over his options before issuing his next series of orders. "Re-direct all excess energy to our shields, but don't fire any more shots at that thing."  
"Yes, sir."

He hesitated to say what came next, but knew it was the best decision. "Lieutenant Uhura?"  
She looked over at him. "Yes?"  
"Please send a message and ask Khan to report to the Bridge immediately; it's time he made himself useful."  
She stared at him with wide eyes. "Sir?"  
"Send him my orders, Lieutenant," he told her firmly.

She shot a questioning look to Spock, but the Vulcan only gave a slight nod, which she didn't seem to find very reassuring. But she quickly keyed in the necessary codes and spoke into her microphone in a low but clear voice. She waited a moment for the response, then turned back to Kirk, looking faintly surprised. "He's on his way now, sir. Security is escorting him up."

Working to mask his own shock over the Augment's easy obedience, he simply nodded. "Good."  
Then the Enterprise was hit with four more energy blasts, one after the other.  
"Shields are down to thirty percent!" Sulu called out, looking alarmed as he hurried to initiate evasive maneuvers.

" _Not_ good," Kirk groaned.

* * *

Elaria tumbled out of bed as the starship rocked from a series of impacts. She hit the floor and rolled, ending up in a crouch, tensed like a cat about to spring into motion.

The lighting in her room flickered then went out entirely as they were hit by another blast. But the lack of light didn't inconvenience her; she could see in the dark just as easily as in the light, courtesy of her feline eyes.

She stood and hit a button on the wall console. "Elaria to the Bridge?" she said questioningly.  
The only response she got was static. Which meant that either the comm system had been knocked out, or that the people on the Bridge were too busy to answer her. Possibly both.

The ship was rocked with another blast and she decided that maybe she should go take a look around, and see what was going on for herself. She had a nagging suspicion about the source of this trouble.

* * *

Khan could tell that the two security men flanking him were expecting him to take advantage of the current chaos; even as the three of them headed for the Bridge, they kept their weapons trained on him. Not that they could have taken him down even if they'd tried; the only time a phaser could actually stun him was if it took him by surprise, and even that only lasted a few seconds.

The lights overhead flickered as they reached the turbolift, and then security guards exchanged worried looks. Then one of their communicator's beeped.  
" _Where the hell is Khan?_ " Kirk's voice demanded. " _We need him up here!_ "

Khan arched a brow at the guards. One of them opened his mouth to respond to his captain when suddenly the communication cut out, dissolving into white noise.  
"What's going on?" the other guard demanded, scowling furiously.

"It's a selective EMP," a voice said matter-of-factly.  
Khan and his two babysitters whirled around; not even the Augment had heard Elaria's approach.

Khan recovered his composure first. "You know the source?"  
Gold eyes flickered over to him. "It's coming from the same thing that's shooting at us."  
He rolled his eyes. "Obviously. But _what_ is it?"

"How do I get to the Bridge from here?" she asked, ignoring his question and instead peering at the turbolift controls.  
"Why?" he asked, impatient.  
"Because I'd really rather not give this explanation twice," she said, then stepped into the turbolift.

Having no choice but to follow, he entered as well; they were joined by the two redshirts almost immediately, and soon the turbolift was speeding them up to the Bridge.

* * *

"What's the situation?"

Kirk looked over to see Khan coming out of the turbolift. He nodded to the two guards in silent dismissal, then responded to the Augment's inquiry. "Not good," he said, then turned to his First Officer. "Spock?"

"Shields are down to fourteen percent, Captain. And we are still unable to get a more in-depth scan of the object."

Khan turned slightly to look expectantly at someone Kirk hadn't noticed right away.  
"Elaria?" Kirk said in surprise. "What are you doing up here?"  
"She seems to know something about our attacker," the Augment answered.  
Spock came over. "Please elaborate," he requested.

The Karitani woman glanced at the Vulcan. "I can't be sure without seeing it – "  
"Our observation cameras have been knocked out along with communications," Sulu interjected.  
" –but I'm reasonably sure that it's an old warrior drone from the war."

"War?" Kirk repeated, looking confused.  
"The Karitani and the Rhovishans were at war for over two decades," Spock informed him. "As both races are extremely secretive, not much else is known."

Elaria nodded. "During the course of the war, both sides created unmanned drones for multiple purposes. Some were spy drones for gathering information, others were for carrying encrypted message."  
"And this one?" Kirk asked.  
"As I said before, a warrior drone."  
"And what purpose does such a drone serve?" Spock asked.

A short sigh. "These types of drones are programmed to search out and destroy any vessels that don't match those it considers allies, or at least those it's programmed to think are enemies." A pause. "This one is likely Karitani in design; they're programmed to knock out enemy communications during the course of an attack, to prevent the target from calling for assistance."

"Can you deactivate it?" Kirk asked urgently. "Or convince it we're not a threat? Something?"  
She shook her head. "No. Once a drone has begun its assault, only a high-ranking override code can shut it down."

"I take it you have no such code," Spock surmised.  
She wrinkled her nose at him. "Do I look like a high-ranking official to you?"  
He opened his mouth to answer, then seemed to think better of it.

"What of Vartik?" Khan asked. "Would he have a shut-down code from the drone?"  
She shrugged. "Call him up here and ask him. At the very least he'll be able to tell you more about the drone."

Kirk exchanged a look with his First Officer who nodded. "Alright then." He turned to another crewman. "Go fetch Vartik and bring him here."  
"Yes, sir."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thus ends Chapter 5! What do you guys think so far? Good, bad, so-so? Let me know how you're feeling about things so far, I always value your input. :D


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I'm in such a good mood today that I've decided to post another chapter ahead of schedule. Enjoy! :D

Elaria felt _way_ out of place on the Bridge. Every single person there clearly knew what they were supposed to be doing and was doing it. Even Khan, who they were wary of, was not as out of place as she was. Even now, he was carrying on a low conversation with Kirk and Spock; they seemed to be debating a course of action.

Her thoughts regarding Khan were abruptly interrupted when the turbolift arrived. The doors whooshed open, and she barely had time to react before Vartik slammed into her, snarling at her in Karitani.

" _You impudent wretch_!" he shouted. " _How dare you tell them about our drones!"  
_ She crashed to the floor, but scrambled quickly to her feet. " _That drone is attacking us_ ," she hissed. " _Would you rather I said nothing and let it destroy the ship?"_  
"Remember your place!" he roared, and hit her hard across the face.

She flew through the air and crashed into a currently unoccupied workstation, then fell to the floor in a heap, ears ringing.

She could hear, as if from far away, Kirk barking orders at security personnel to restrain her father. Vartik resisted, but Kirk made it clear that if the Karitani man didn't cool off, he'd hurl him into a holding cell then abandon him at the next world they passed, inhabited or not.

Meanwhile, she was still on the floor. Her head was pounding, and her shoulders and upper back were aching painfully. She was physically fit, but her father was by no means a lightweight; he'd been a formidable warrior in his youth, and all that strength and skill had remained with him through the years.

Trying to decide if she should try to open her eyes and stand up, or just let herself pass out, she wasn't immediately aware of someone kneeling down next to her. But whoever it was lightly touched the back of her head where she'd slammed it into the console, evidently checking for serious damage.

Her hearing cut back in just in time for her to hear Kirk's voice. "Khan, how is she?"  
Cool hands finished prodding at her scalp and moved instead to take her pulse. "She is alive."  
"How badly is she hurt?"  
"That," Khan answered, "is a question better directed at your Doctor McCoy. You called me up here to help deal with the drone, not play physician."

A moment of silence, so long that she opened her eyes ever so slightly, to see what was going on. Khan, above and behind her prone form, was simply a blur in her peripheral vision. Kirk and Spock were standing shoulder to shoulder facing Vartik, who had, she saw with some amusement, been cuffed to the chair in which he sat.

"Do you know of a code that will shut down the warrior drone?" Spock asked.  
Vartik gave no answer, but Kirk smiled. "Of course he knows it. He wouldn't have flipped out like that if he didn't." He leaned down so that he was almost nose-to-nose with her father. "The reason you were so mad at Elaria was because she told us about the drones, right? And about how you might have a code to stop this one?"

Vartik still said nothing, but his expression had soured at the mention of her name. He looked past Kirk to where she was on the floor, Khan still kneeling beside her. His gold eyes met hers, and the hatred in his gaze scorched her soul, the pain made more potent since she didn't understand _why_ he hated her so much.

Fury stirring in her heart, she swallowed against the lump in her throat and spoke. "Give them the code," she said angrily, deliberately forgoing Karitani and speaking English instead. "We'll all die if you don't." She narrowed her eyes at him. "Jaylira included."

She could feel Kirk and Spock looking at her; Khan, too. But she didn't turn to meet their gazes; she just glared at her father, willing him to relent and give Kirk the shutdown code for the drone. She may have not cared about her own continued existence, but the crew of this ship didn't deserve to die, not when Vartik could stop it.

The silence stretched on unbearably, punctuated only by the impacts from the drone's attacks.  
"Shields are down to eight percent!" Sulu shouted, just as some of the consoles on the Bridge began to spark from the blown circuits and cease functioning.

"The Enterprise will not be able to take much more," Spock told Kirk in a low tone.  
The captian simply turned his gaze back to Vartik. "The code," he said flatly.  
Vartik pursed his lips. "Fine," he said at last. "But only for Jaylira's sake! If her life were not at stake, I would never divulge such secrets!"

"How very noble of you," Elaria muttered, then moved to push herself into sitting position. a sharp bolt of pain lanced through her skull, and she bit her lip to avoid gasping in pain and drawing attention to herself. But the svelte man beside her seemed to notice every little detail, and her freezing mid-motion certainly did not escape his notice.

"You shouldn't move," Khan said coolly. "You most likely have a concussion." His tone was calm and matter-of-fact, with no emotional nuances whatsoever. He could have been commenting on the time of day for all the compassion he showed.

She finished sitting up, ignoring the starbursts exploding in her vision. Once she was sure she wouldn't throw up, she answered him. "Thank you," she said coldly, "for your concern. But I'm fine."  
He arched an eyebrow at that, a small smirk forming on his lips. "Is that so."  
It is," she said curtly, then turned her attention back to her father, who was now seated at one of the working consoles. Supervised by Spock, he transmitted a shut-down code to the attacking drone.

At first it seemed ineffective; the drone continued shooting at them. But it stopped firing a moment later, and then ceased moving altogether.  
"Sulu?" Kirk said.

The helmsman tapped his controls, eyes intent on the screen in front of him. "The drone is inactive, sir. All its systems have powered down." He exhaled. "It's over."  
Kirk sighed in relief. "Good." He glanced at Uhura. "Are communications back online?"  
"Yes, sir.

"Send a message to Engineering; have Scotty send a couple of his guys out in a shuttle to retrieve that drone."  
"Yes, sir."  
He turned back to Spock. "I want you and Carol to take it apart, find out what makes it tick. I don't want to be dependent on that shut-down code for our survival if we come across any more of those."  
The Vulcan nodded. "I heartily agree, Captain."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, yeah, it's a pretty short chapter. But even so, I hope you liked it. If you've got a second, let me know what you think about how things are going so far, okay? I love feedback from you guys. :)


	7. Chapter 7

Two hours after the conclusion of the altercation with the drone, Kirk was summoned down to Engineering by Spock. While Scotty and the other engineers have been working on fixing the damage done to the Enterprise, his Vulcan friend had been working alongside Carol Marcus, who had become their official weapons expert.

"Alright, Spock," he said as he approached the work table. "What's the word?"  
"We have concluded our initial assessment of the warrior drone," Spock informed him.  
"And?"  
"This drone has been tampered with," Carol said, brushing a strand of blonde hair out of her eyes. "There are new components inside, pieces that don't match the level of technology for the time it was built."  
He frowned. "What?"  
"Someone took this drone and re-programmed it," Spock said. "Not all of its systems, but simply those for its designated targets."

"That drone should never have attacked us," Carol continued, showing him the diagnostic on her PADD. "It's original programming was to be hostile towards Rhovishan ships only."  
"So you're telling me that someone re-programmed this thing to attack us specifically."  
"That would be a safe assumption to make," Spock agreed.

Kirk scowled. "Who the hell would be able to hack a drone that almost no one even knows exists?"

* * *

"This is Solomon's work," Khan said flatly, staring at the gutted remains of the drone dispassionately.  
"You are certain?" Spock asked.  
"Yes." Khan nodded. "I'm quite familiar with his methods; this is undoubtedly his handiwork. "

Kirk didn't look at all happy; he looked over at Spock. "So he's still trying to get Jaylira."  
"It would seem so," the Vulcan concurred.

The two of them moved off to the side, discussing options in low voices. Khan, meanwhile, continued to stare at the disassembled drone. Inside him a fierce emotional tempest was raging. Logically he'd known that this mission would require him to betray Solomon; he'd accepted it as a necessary evil, something he had to do in order to secure a future for the rest of his crew. But now, when confronted with the reality of it, of knowing that he and Solomon were on opposing sides…it was proving more difficult to reconcile himself with it than he'd anticipated.

"If you'll excuse me, Captain," he said, throat constricted, "I should like to return to my quarters now."  
Kirk looked at him oddly. "Okay, sure." He nodded to the redshirt waiting by the door. "Lieutenant, escort Mr. Khan back to his quarters."  
"Yes, sir."

The pressure in his chest eased somewhat once he (and his babysitter) left the room where the drone was. Out of sight, out of mind; he knew it was weak of him to flee from the reminder of his former friend's current status as his enemy, but he couldn't seem to stop the sick feeling coursing through his body.

He was so distracted that he collided with Elaria as he rounded a corner. He reached out automatically to stop her fall, catching her arm in a firm grip.

They stood there like that for a moment, and he couldn't help but notice the faint surprise ib her face; it was as if his halting her fall had come as a shock. Her startled look was gone a second later, replaced by a carefully neutral expression.

"Hello," she said coolly.  
He simply nodded.  
And awkward silence settled in as they stood there, neither seeming inclined to speak, or move along. Thankfully, the security lieutenant broke the tense silence. "Do you need help getting somewhere, Miss Elaria?"

The Karitani woman seemed to consider it. "Medbay," she admitted after a moment. "Kirk wanted me to get looked at after that fiasco on the Bridge, but I blew him off." She grimaced. "But since my head feels like it's about to explode, I figure maybe I should stop by after all."

Khan felt curiously compelled to point out how foolish she'd been to avoid a medical examination, particularly after how hard she'd slammed into that console, but realized such censure was not likely o go over well with this strange golden-eyed woman, whose moods seemed to be even more mercurial than his own. "Medbay is this way," he said instead, and set off in the appropriate direction, ignoring the baffled stare of his redshirt babysitter.

* * *

Elaria wished her thoughts weren't quite so muddled by the splitting headache that had started up a little under twenty minutes before. If she'd had her usual clarity, she'd have been confident enough to decline Khan's assistance; the mysterious man was so clearly a force to be reckoned with, and having him nearby set off all her fight-or-flight instincts. But she couldn't deny the strange pull she felt towards him, a pull that was only fueled by his contradictory behavior.

He'd been so emotionless on the Bridge, but the look in his eyes when he'd come around the corner...that had been despair, strong enough to suffocate and smother. She'd seen it in her own eyes often enough to know it immediately when she saw it in other people.

There was more to Khan than met the eye, she realized. Much, much more.

"Here," he said suddenly, stopping outside what she recognized as the doors leading into Medbay.  
"Thank you," she said.  
He nodded, but said nothing.  
She opened her mouth to say some variety of 'see you around' when suddenly a white hot pain stabbed into the back of her skull, originating roughly from where she'd hit her head earlier. Her knees gave out, and the last thing she saw was Khan lunging towards her, saying something she couldn't hear over the ringing in her ears.

Then everything went black, and she plunged into unconsciousness.

* * *

McCoy was reviewing a crewman's physical when the door to his Medbay whooshed open. Looking up, he was startled to see Khan stride in, an unconscious Elaria in his arms, with a frantic security guard on his heels.

"What happened?" he demanded, tossing his PADD down and rushing over to where Khan was setting Elaria down on an examining table. "Did you do something to her?!"  
The Augment ignored him, instead focusing on the unconscious woman; he held her wrist lightly, presumably taking her pulse and calculating her heart rate. The guard, a lieutenant, hurried to explain. "It wasn't him, sir, he didn't do anything. We bumped into her in the hall, and led her here-"  
"She was complaining of a headache," Khan interjected, his eyes never wavering from Elaria's face.  
"-and we'd barely reached the door when suddenly she collapsed," the redshirt finished, looking worried.

"With no warning?" McCoy asked disbelief.  
"No, sir. Just the headache."  
McCoy, cursed. "If she'd reported here right away after getting injured..." He shook his head angrily. "What good does i do to have me here when my patients refuse to come down and get looked at? Sure, it could have been a simple concussion, but obviously it's not." He shook his head again. "Unbelievable."

Then he flew into action, gathering up equipment and activating various machines. "Here," he said, shoving a tricorder into Khan's hands. "Make yourself useful and keep track of her vitals." He didn't even bother to see if the Augment obeyed or not; he was focused only on the patient. It was in situations like this where the rest of the universe just fell away for him; his entire world shrunk down to just him and his patient.

He only hoped he could figure out what was wrong with Elaria before it was too late.

* * *

Elaria woke up feeling severely disoriented, and with a faint stuffiness in her head, as if she'd had a head cold. Opening her eyes, she discovered that she was flat on her back in Medbay. Well, not entirely flat; her bed was angled so that she was sort of sitting up while laying down.

The doctor, McCoy, noticed her return to consciousness and came over. "Finally. We were starting to worry that you might not come out of the sedation; luckily, it seems that Karitani react to the drugs in much the same way as humans."

It took her much longer to process that statement than it should have, and she realized it was the remnants of the sedatives that were fogging her mind. She took a moment to straighten out her tangled thoughts, then spoke. "What happened?" she asked.  
"You collapsed in the hall," McCoy informed her.  
She recalled it hazily. "But I'm okay, right? I mean, I feel fine now."

But McCoy's severe expression didn't change; he simply looked over his shoulder, and she realized that they weren't alone. Standing across the room were Kirk, Spock, and Khan, all looking gravely serious.  
She swallowed hard. "What's going on?" she asked, feeling some stirring of fear.

McCoy sighed. "We discovered something unusual in the full scan we did after your collapse. It didn't appear on your initial scan, for reasons Mr. Spock will explain shortly."  
She frowned. "What the hell are you talking about? What did you find?"  
The doctor held out a PADD. She took it and looked down at the image on the screen.

It showed an enhanced x-ray image of her head and shoulders.. At first glance it seemed perfectly normal, but then she noticed something. There was a small square of...something, at the base of her skull. "What is that?"  
"A computer chip," Spock informed her. "We cannot be positive, but we believe it to be a tracker of some sort." He paused, then continued. "We speculate that it was put there sometime in your childhood. Do you recall such a procedure?"

She shook her head. "No." Then it hit her. "This thing has been in me for _years_?"  
The Vulcan nodded.  
"If that's the case, why didn't I know until now? I should have felt it at some point, right, as I grew older? At the very least it should have shown up on my earlier medical scans!"  
But Spock shook his head. "The tracker chip is surprisingly complex. In addition to secreting an anesthetic it creates using your body's own chemicals, it possesses a small energy shield, which prevented our scanners from detecting it the first time."

"But you can detect it now," she said flatly. "What changed?"  
Kirk shifted uncomfortably, but spoke. "When you hit your head this afternoon it damaged the chip. The shield emitter was rendered inert, and the portion responsible for secreting the anesthetic began shorting out."  
"That short has since ceased," Spock interjected, "but may occur again without warning."  
"Which wouldn't have been a problem," McCoy said, "if the chip hadn't shifted position."

She wasn't sure she could handle anymore, but knew she had no choice but to listen; she decided to focus on Khan, whose face was so remote he could have been a statue. "Shifted position?"

McCoy pursed his lips. "Whoever the surgeon was who did the original procedure, they were damn good. They inserted it into a section of tissue that was lacking any serious nerve-endings. But your accident today..." He shook his head. "The blow to your head caused the chip to shift position. It's now right next to a very sensitive nerve cluster."

"That's why I blacked out," she realized.  
He nodded. "Yes. The chip touched a nerve and the pain overload made your body shut itself down."

She sat there and struggled to absorb it all. A chip in her head, there for years without her knowing. How...how could that be...  
"There is more," Spock said, though his tone was reluctant.  
Feeling exhausted, she sighed. "What else?"  
"We were able to enlarge an image of the chip. embossed onto one portion of it is what seems to be a crest or insignia of some kind."

She looked at him apprehensively, not wanting to hear what he was going to tell her. After all, there was only one person who'd have been able to authorize that procedure for her during her infancy. Only one person who had the connections needed to employ the specialist who'd performed the operation.

"The insignia on the chip," the Vulcan said, "bears a striking resemblance to the crest on Vartik's ring."

* * *

Kirk couldn't help but watch helplessly as Elaria lay with her eyes closed. Following Spock's pronouncement, she'd withdrawn completely, not responding to their questions or comments. The only thing she'd said had been in answer to Spock's asking her why Vartik would have such a chip implanted in her; "You'd have to ask him," was all she'd said.

Looking at her, something disquieting occurred to him. He grabbed Bones by the elbow and pulled him aside. "I need a favor."  
"You always need a favor," his friend countered, grumbling.  
"I want you to run Elaria's blood through the system again. And this time compare it to Vartik's."  
"What?" McCoy looked at him in disbelief. "Why?"

He clapped his friend on the back. "Humor me."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just wanted to let you all know that starting today, I will be posting various little things on my tumblr regarding Elaria. My username over there is yuzukimist and the blog is Moonlit Ramblings, so if you guys have any interest in my amateur quotepics or little spastic updates about how frustrating it is for me to write Khan, feel free to swing on by. :D


	8. Chapter 8

Khan sat at one of Medbay's work tables, ignoring McCoy's suspicious looks as he fiddled with a broken microscope. His real reason for being there was not the repair of the microscope, but rather to watch Elaria, who had fallen into an uneasy slumber after Kirk and Spock had left to return to the Bridge.

He couldn't rationally explain why he was still there in Medbay. But there was something about her...it made no sense, but he felt as if he needed to be there, near her.

And then there was the mystery of the tracking chip. He was inclined to agree with Spock in thinking that Vartik was ultimately responsible, but couldn't fathom _why_ the man would want to put a tracker chip in Elaria. It was obvious that the two didn't get along, but what reason could he have for doing such a thing?

"I'll be damned," McCoy exclaimed suddenly.  
Frowning, Khan looked over at the doctor, who had been running some sort of test at his work station. "What is it?"  
McCoy shook his head. "I need to find Jim right away. He's not gonna believe this."

And then the doctor was gone, rushing out the door, leaving Medbay empty save for Elaria, Khan, and the two redshirts by the door.

* * *

Kirk was just leaving Engineering when Bones ran up to him.

"I ran the blood," the doctor told his friend. "You'll never guess what I found."  
But Jim already knew. "She's his daughter."  
Bones stared at him. "How did you...?"

"Just had a feeling." A lot of things had been bugging him about the dynamic between Elaria and Vartik, and as soon as the possibility of a familial connection had occurred to him, he'd found that he couldn't get the thought from his mind.

"Well, your feeling was right," McCoy continued. "She's his daughter, no doubt about it. And there's more."  
Kirk raised his eyebrows in surprise. "More?"  
"I also compared her DNA to Jaylira's, and guess what? They're _twins_."

That he had not expected. "What? No way." He frowned. "They don't look anything alike."  
"Well, Jaylira is a celebrity. I wouldn't be surprised if those luscious blonde locks were fake."  
"Hmm." Jim regarded his Chief Medical Officer seriously. "I think it's time we had a chat with Elaria about this."

Bones didn't look at all thrilled at that suggestion. "Jim, she's still recovering from the last bombshell we dropped on her. Do you really think giving her another shock so soon is a good idea?"  
Kirk hopped in the turbolift. "I don't think she'll be shocked at all."  
"You don't," his friend repeated, eyeing him in disbelief.  
"No," Kirk affirmed. "I think she's known it all her life." It would explain why she hadn't fought back when Vartik had attacked her, even though she was clearly physically capable of doing so.

There were other little abnormalities he couldn't figure out, but knew it all had to ultimately track back to Elaria's hidden connection to Vartik. He just hoped the woman herself would be able to clarify things for him, because right now he couldn't even being to understand what was going on between her and her father.

* * *

"Something of interest has come to our attention," Spock said, watching Elaria carefully.  
"Something more interesting than the chip in my head?" she remarked, arching an eyebrow.  
Spock simply turned to McCoy, who was standing nearby, flanked by Kirk and Khan. "We ran a DNA analysis of your blood," the doctor told her.

Her reaction was immediate; her face went completely blank, as if she were shuttering all emotion.  
"I assume," Spock continued, "that you know what we discovered."  
"Do tell," she said, her voice devoid of any feeling.

"Your genetic structure is the same as Jaylira's, who is equal parts Karitani and human. Furthermore, a comparison of your blood to Vartik's tells that you are, in fact, his daughter. Jaylira's twin, I presume, given that you appear to be the same age."

Elaria said nothing, but her entire body was tense, as if she were bracing herself for a fight, and her golden eyes were a clear indicator of her emotional state.

"What I want to know," Kirk said, stepping forward, "is why he treats you the way he does. And Jaylira, too; she acts like she really hates you, but if you're sisters-"  
"She doesn't know that we're sisters," Elaria interrupted.  
Kirk stared at her. "What?"  
"She doesn't know," she repeated through gritted teeth. Then she gave a bitter laugh. "I think she's under the impression that I'm some sort of failed cloning experiment, or something along those lines."  
"Why would she believe such a ludicrous notion?" Spock asked.  
She snorted. "Because Daddy dearest told her so."  
"But why doesn't he treat you like his kid?" Kirk persisted. "I mean, he's even telling your sister that you're _not_ her sister."

A long silence, as Elaria seemed to consider how much to tell them. "On Karitana," she said eventually, "twins are considered bad luck. In the history of our world, some of the worst conflicts came about as a result of feuding twins. Therefore, it's tradition to abandon the younger twin into the wilderness."  
"But you were not abandoned," Spock remarked.

"No, I wasn't." She sighed. "But that wasn't the result of any kindness from my parents. Vartik and Caroline, my human mother, were fearful for Jaylira's well-being. You see," she explained, "my sister and I are the only Karitani-human hybrids ever to have been born. Such children don't usually make it to term; the fetuses perish within the first few weeks. So you can understand," she continued, " how thrilled they were when they passed that period without incident. But then it was discovered that rather than one baby, Caroline carried twins. "She looked down, not meeting their eyes. "It was Vartik who decided what to do. He'd already been concerned about Jaylira's future, you see. What if she needed an organ transplant later in life, or even a simple blood donation? There are _no_ other Karitani-human hybrids, much less one with the same blood type."

"So they decided not to abandon you," Kirk concluded.  
She nodded. "They disregarded the tradition. But Vartik couldn't allow his wife to give birth to twins; other high-ranking officials from Karitana would be present at the birth, as is customary for nobles like Vartik. His standing among them would be destroyed if they saw his wife give birth to twins. To avoid such a scandal, he enlisted a skilled doctor who performed a highly experimental procedure that involved transplanting the second fetus into a surrogate mother. The surrogate nearly died, but the operation was ultimately successful. Jaylira and I were born on the same day, at almost the same time. But while she was born into a room full of people who loved and wanted her, my birth was hidden away, and I had only my surrogate mother and a physician to welcome me to the world." She lapsed into silence, wrapping her arms around herself. "So there you have it," she finished. "As far as they're concerned, I'm just spare parts."

 


	9. Chapter 9

Khan was frustrated. He should have been plotting what to do for when he encountered Solomon, or at least envisioning contingencies for rescuing his people if this alliance with Kirk fell through.

But all he could think of was that woman Elaria, and the bitterness and pain she'd had in her eyes and voice when telling the truth of who she was.

He knew all too well the pain that came from being used, from being seen not as a person, but instead as the means to an end. Marcus had used him in such a way, and his creators had done the same all those years ago; they'd both tried to control him for their own ends. In the end they'd all paid the price for their manipulation of him, but the revenge hadn't eased that pain, not completely.

Betrayal was a potent emotion, one that lingered long past the actual event. The ones responsible for making him and the other Augments were long dead, but the resentment he felt towards them had yet to fade.

Yes, he understood Elaria's pain well; it was like a reflection of his own.

* * *

"I can't discharge you yet," McCoy told her with a scowl. "What if you have another episode?"  
Elaria glared at him. "My being here won't stop me from blacking out."  
"But I"ll be able to treat you right away if you do," he argued.  
She growled at him. "You're being ridiculous. We both know that there's really not much you can do either way. I'm going back to my room."

He seemed to realize that he wasn't going to be able to convince her to stay. "Fine," he relented. "But at least keep this with you." He handed her a small communicator.  
She turned it over in her hands then pocketed it with a shrug. "Whatever you say." She gave a mock salute, then hurried out before he could change his mind about letting her go.

Instead of returning to her quarters, though, she headed for one of the workout rooms that the lieutenant from earlier had told her about during a chat they'd had.

She knew resting would be the wiser course of action, but she had so much pent up emotion...and physical exertion had always been her preferred outlet for when she was feeling volatile. She was relieved to find the workout room empty; the mood she was in, interaction with others was _not_ a good idea.

She rummaged around in a cabinet full of workout clothes then quickly changed into the tank top and shorts she found. Then she went up to a punching bag and slammed it with her fist. Right. Left. Right, right, left, right. A spinning kick that sent the bag swinging away.

Her frenetic thoughts calmed as she fell into the smooth cadence of kickboxing, and she kept going without pause, reveling in the calm focus that was washing over her.

* * *

Khan was on his way back to his quarters when he passed a workout room that had the door slightly ajar. Pausing to look inside, he was surprised to see Elaria. Dressed in form-fitting workout clothes that showed off an attractively lithe figure, the Karitani (or rather, half-Karitani) woman seemed intent on beating the stuffing out of punching bag.

He made a motion for his redshirt babysitter to wait in the hall then silently slipped into the room.

* * *

She was halfway through thirty alternating punches when she sensed someone come up behind her. Transitioned fully into fighting mode, she reacted instinctively, sweeping a leg under their feet then leaping down on them, putting her right arm across their throat. Then she noticed who it was, and reality snapped back into focus.

"Khan," she said, surprised.  
There was surprise on his face, too, as if he were startled that she'd taken him down. But the surprise was quickly replaced with bemusement. "Expecting someone else?"  
She flushed. "Sorry. I was...uh, a little too focused, I guess."

He gave a low chuckle. "Understandable. I've been there myself."  
She smiled hesitantly, then sobered. "Why did you come in here?" she asked.  
He seemed to consider the question. "I was...concerned for you," he admitted after a moment, and she could see the confusion in his eyes, as if his interest in her well-being was as baffling to him as it was to her.  
"Oh," was all she could say at first. "Thank you." She wasn't used to anyone showing, or even pretending to show, concern for her. As a result, she was rendered pretty much speechless.

Khan didn't seem to find her silence odd, and also didn't seem inclined to say anything more for the moment. Instead he seemed to be committing her face to memory, his eyes tracing her features. Then he did something that took her entirely by grabbed her arm and pulled her to the side, rolling her off of him; but instead of her there, he moved that she he was braced above her, his blue eyes never wavering from her gold ones.

Those eyes were so full of feeling, with so many emotions, it made her heart skip a beat. And her heart almost stopped altogether when he brought his face closer to hers, so that they were practically sharing each others' breath. Then he pressed his lips to hers, ever so gently. The kiss felt simultaneously too short and infinitely long; it was as if time had ceased moving forward the moment their lips had touched.

And then it over, and Khan was looking down at her, his expression a combination of uncertainty and confusion, with a tinge of satisfaction. As for her...her heart was pounding, and she could _feel_ her face turning red. And she couldn't deny the odd flutter in her stomach. But she couldn't think of a single thing to say.

She was spared having to do so when suddenly Khan's personal communicator went off. He ignored it for a moment, then seemed to think better of it. He smoothly stood up, holding out a hand to help her up as he flipped open the communicator with his other. "This is Khan."

" _We're stopping off at a spacedock for repairs_ ," Kirk's voice said without preamble. " _I need you to come up to the Bridge so we can strategize; I wouldn't be surprised if your old buddy Solomon tried something while we're there_."  
Khan's eyes darkened with an emotion she couldn't name. "...I agree," he said after a long pause. "I'll be right up. Please have the schematics of the spacedock prepared for me."  
" _Sure thing_."

The the transmission ended, and Khan returned the communicator to his pocket.  
"Solomon is the man who's after Jaylira," Elaria stated. "Was he behind the drone, too?"  
Khan simply nodded, his thoughts elsewhere.  
"You know him," she guessed.  
"He was one of my crew," he told her, his voice quiet.  
"But you're helping Kirk to catch him."

"Yes," he said, his tone full of self-loathing. "I am."  
She looked at him closely. He clearly didn't like having to be at odds with a former shipmate. She wanted to say something to reassure him, to ease his pain, but couldn't think of anything that wouldn't sound like false comfort.

"Come up to the Bridge with me," he said suddenly.  
Her thoughts scattered and she stared at him. "What? Why?"  
"You can help us strategize for our stay at the spacedock."  
She looked at him in disbelief. "I'm no tactician. There's nothing I could do that someone else couldn't do better."  
But he shook his head. "You know Jaylira. Her habits, her personality."  
"How does that help?" she asked with an exasperated huff.  
"You're not stupid, Elaria," he said patiently."You know how it helps."

Well, yeah, she did. Knowing Jaylira as well as she did, she could predict almost any action or reaction the popstar might have. And for their stay at the spacedock, where they'd need to plan three steps ahead just to keep up with the risks, that could make all the difference.

"Fine," she relented. "I'll come. But I won't," she said suddenly, "go anywhere near Vartik. And if he comes within twenty feet of me I'm liable to get violent." She still had the childish hope that her father might someday come to accept her as his daughter, but the tracker chip in her head had been the proverbial last straw. She hadn't confronted him about it yet, for fear of the very real possibility that she might attack him. And a true fight between the two of them would result in serious injuries on both sides, something she wanted to avoid; critically wounding her father was not likely to get him to develop any fondness for her.

Khan's eyes seemed to read all that in her face, and nodded. "We won't involve him in our planning unless it becomes absolutely necessary."  
She arched an eyebrow. "You can't guarantee that."  
He cast her an amused look. "Can't I?"

She said nothing in response, but had to admit to herself that she believed that if Khan wanted something his way, he wouldn't stop until he was satisfied. And she found that she rather liked that idea.

* * *

Kirk was running over their itinerary for their stay at the spacedock when Khan arrived. He was surprised to see that the Augment wasn't alone.

"Elaria," he said. "I didn't realize Bones had cut you loose."  
She gave a crooked smile. "He did so very reluctantly and with much protest." She rubbed the back of her neck pointedly. "He's worried I might have another fit, but I don't see the point in being bedridden when there's nothing he can do to help me."  
"I'm sure he'll figure something out," Kirk assured her. "Just give him some time."  
She only shrugged, looking surprisingly unconcerned.

"The schematics?" Khan asked, returning Kirk's attention to the matter at hand.  
Kirk nodded, and waved him over; he was hesitant to admit it, even to himself, but he was growing more comfortable with having Khan around. Aside from their first few encounters, they'd gotten along fairly well; Kirk couldn't help but feel that he and Khan were more alike than different. They were both driven by emotion more often than not, and they would both do anything for the sake of their respective crews. Sure, Khan's crew were all power-hungry Augments. But still...

"How many people are there at the spacedock?" Elaria asked curiously, looking down at the expansive layout depicted by the schematics.  
"Approximately twenty thousand," Spock answered as he came over.  
She whistled. "Impressive."  
Kirk nodded. "It serves as a sort of rest stop, so there're a lot of different people. It's like a small city."

* * *

A small city floating in space, brimming with people...Elaria hated to admit it, bit the very idea was daunting. Doubly so, since one of those people would be the man who was trying to kill her sister.

 


	10. Chapter 10

 

"This is most unwise," was the first thing Spock said when Jaylira told them of her decision to take a tour of the space station.  
  
"I agree," Kirk said, looking at the blonde as if she'd lost her mind. "You have an assassin after you. The last thing you should be doing is waltzing through crowds."  
  
But the celebrity refused to give in. "I have a reputation to uphold. Word will get out that I'm onboard the Enterprise, and what will people think if I don't make an appearance?"

Elaria rolled her eyes. Reputations, appearances…that was Vartik's brainwashing at work. All the man had ever seemed to care about was his standing in others' eyes; it was an attitude Jaylira had absorbed eagerly, like a dry sponge soaking up moisture.

She noticed Khan looking at her and very deliberately stuck her tongue out at him. He gave a low chuckle at the childish gesture before returning his attention to the escalating argument between Kirk and Jaylira.

"You can't keep me prisoner here!" her sister shrieked, face red with anger.  
  
"You're in protective custody," Kirk insisted. "And you're safest here onboard the Enterprise."  
  
But Jaylira shook her head, refusing to listen to reason. "I'm going!" she shouted. "And if you try and stop me, I'll tell my father; he'll make sure you're all court-marshalled when you get back to Earth!"

Kirk exchanged a worried look with Spock, and Elaria decided it was time for her to intervene; her sister's entitled attitude was getting out of control. "Relax," she told the Starfleet officers. "Vartik may be on good terms with Starfleet Command, but even he doesn't have _that_ much pull."  
  
Jaylira glared at her. "Stay out of this, you freak."

Elaria put her hands on her hips. "Why should I? Your decision to go on the station impacts all of us. Who do you think gets the short end of the stick if you get your stupid ass critically shot? Me, that's who." There was no point avoiding that fact; even if JayJay thought she was just a clone, it would still be her who would be sacrificed it Jaylira got hurt.

Her sister just made a face. "That's was you're for, remember? Besides, I don't plan on getting shot."  
  
"Few people plan it," Elaria said agreeably, " and yet it still happens."  
  
Jaylira flushed and stepped forward, raising her hand as if she planned to strike Elaria.  
  
But Elaria narrowed her eyes at her twin. "Don't," she said, putting into her tone a warning of how dangerously foolish such an action would be.

Jaylira seemed to get the message; she froze mid-step, her face blanching white. She swallowed once, then turned back to Kirk. "I _am_ going down to the station."  
  
Elaria repressed the urge to sigh. They were right back where they'd started. "For the love of…" She shook her head. "Just let her go. We'll just protect her the best we can."

Jaylira cast her a disbelieving look. "You, protect me?"  
  
"I want you alive and well, JayJay. If you're in good condition, I get to stay alive."  
  
Jaylira gave a derisive snort. "You didn't seem to care much about live when you tried killing yourself all those times. Why bother caring now?"

Dead silence. She could feel everyone's eyes on her, but refused to acknowledge their stares. "My change in values is not the issue here, princess." She turned to Kirk. "Captain?"  
  
He hesitated for a moment, then nodded. "Fine. You, Khan, and two security officers. Stay with her at all times."

* * *

Khan wasn't sure what to think. Elaria seemed like such a vivacious woman...and yet she'd tried to kill herself? It made no sense. He wondered if she'd explain if he asked her. There was no denying the strange connection between them...but was that bond enough for Elaria to bare her soul to him? He wasn't sure.

And why was he thinking such useless thoughts anyway? He shook his head. The more he learned about Elaria the more he was drawn to her...but at the same time it distracted him from his original reason for agreeing to assist Kirk: help his fellow Augments.

He felt a sharp stab of guilt; he should be devoting every iota of his energy to helping his people, yet so far he'd done very little on this mission. The only thing he'd really done had been to carry Elaria into the infirmary. The rest of the time he'd just been arguing over various courses of action with Kirk, or helping to identify Solomon's tampering.

He resolved to remain focused for the remainder of the mission, to think of nothing but the task at hand.  
Yet even so...he couldn't get her out of his head. Her feline eyes, and silky dark hair...and the feel of her lips when he'd kissed her...

Angry at himself (why couldn't he get her out of his thoughts? And why had he even kissed her in the first place?), he slammed his fist into the wall. The metal dented under the force of the impact, but the faint tingle of pain cleared his head.

And then his communicator beeped, summoning him down to the shuttle bay for departure, sparing him from further time for introspection.


End file.
